did 80 miles on sunday

my group and i, did 80 miles on sunday, went from lake worth bridge, to 17 the street causeway in ft. lauderdale. we are currently training for the horrible hundred in november. we had gotten a bit of a late start so around 1130 1200 it started to get so hot. and i was so tired. our normal rides hte last mile or so we get into a bit of a sprint, and i called it out about 5 miles left i will not be sprinting today. but overall felt really good with the ride.

Wednesday 9/23/09... Great ride after taking 2 days off. Got a late start today and only did 28.5 miles. Saw one deer in a very unusual location today. Darn thing jumped right out in front of me. It ran about 10 yards and stopped then we did a 10 minute stare down. Don't often see them this late in the day.All is well in Slo Spoke Jim's world.

Another short ride (by my old standards anyway), but at least i'm trying to get back on the bike :-) Saw 4 wild turkeys on the side of the 4 lane busy highway. This was about 11am with quite a bit of traffic going by.

Did the usual 22.3 miles today, but on the modern bike again. I don't think it is a bit faster. In some ways it is more comfortable, in others it is less. I do like the convenience of the modern shifters though! I thought I would get rained on today as there were some ugly clouds overhead, but somehow I missed it.

Saturday 9/26/09... Great ride today. Stopped at Panera Bread and had breakfast. Wildlife count was rather low today. No deer but I did come across these two giants up in Lake county. They had to weigh at least 25 pounds each. I am not sure if they were gofer turtles or not, they were not in a location that I usually find gofers.
All is well in Slo Spoke Jim's world.

Nice day! I got out just before 8am on the 1983 Puch. I felt so good when I reached my normal turnaround spot that I kept going all the way to Inverness. I stopped and rested there, looked out at the lakes in a couple of spots and then turned for home. Total mileage was 34.5 round trip. I was actually a bit surprised when I realized this was the longest ride I have ever done on this particular bike, even though I have owned it for almost 25 years!

Actually got on the bike before noon today LOL Decided at around 8am that I would get my stuff together and head to the Gainesville Hawthorne trail. I got there at about 8:45. I had planned on riding to what I call the middle (not really the middle but nice spot to sit and take a rest). That would have been about an 18 mile ride. But when I got there the picnic table and all the seats were full. Some kind of guided nature walk was taking place. So I rode a bit further to the next place to take a rest. Ended up riding 19.78 miles. It was still pretty hot when I got back to the car but... not as bad as the last few days riding... Went up the road a bit to the Waldo flea market and walked around there... Soooo got a nice ride in... followed by walking a couple of miles at the flea market.. Is that cross training...... hahahahah

Yes, 24.5 miles today. We got started earlier than normal for us...thankfully. We started at our normal spot at Central Ridge and rode a mile or so past Inverness. On the return trip we rode into Inverness to see if the ice cream store was open but found they didn't open until noon. Good! At least I saved those calories. It was HOT the last 5 miles or so on the return trip. Glad to finally get back and out of the sun. When is fall coming? I hope it cools down by next week for the ride on Sunday!

Actually got on the bike before noon today LOL Decided at around 8am that I would get my stuff together and head to the Gainesville Hawthorne trail. I got there at about 8:45. I had planned on riding to what I call the middle (not really the middle but nice spot to sit and take a rest). That would have been about an 18 mile ride. But when I got there the picnic table and all the seats were full. Some kind of guided nature walk was taking place. So I rode a bit further to the next place to take a rest. Ended up riding 19.78 miles. It was still pretty hot when I got back to the car but... not as bad as the last few days riding... Went up the road a bit to the Waldo flea market and walked around there... Soooo got a nice ride in... followed by walking a couple of miles at the flea market.. Is that cross training...... hahahahah

We love that trail! It can be challenging with some of the hills on the Gainesville side. We like to start on the Hawthorne side and ride to the Prairie overlook area for a rest and then back. Then we can hit the BBQ spot in Hawthorne. In fact, I think we just might ride it tomorrow.

We love that trail! It can be challenging with some of the hills on the Gainesville side. We like to start on the Hawthorne side and ride to the Prairie overlook area for a rest and then back. Then we can hit the BBQ spot in Hawthorne. In fact, I think we just might ride it tomorrow.

LindaN

I'm not sure but didn't the Walts close in Hawthorne? I think its called something else now. Still BBQ and there is always cars there so maybe its still good.

Yep I LOVE that trail!! Are you talking about the overlook after the big hill? (after the big hill from the the Hawthorne side). Or the small over look that is just past the spot where people fish? I used to ride the whole trail just about every weekend a few years ago. But could not do it right now. But i'll get there again soon I hope. Would help if the weather would finally cool down some.

They opened up a few side trails that are kind of fun on the MTB. Sometimes I'll take both bikes with me the MTB and the road bike and ride a bit of both. Something different to do once in awhile by riding both bikes in the same day.

I'm not sure but didn't the Walts close in Hawthorne? I think its called something else now. Still BBQ and there is always cars there so maybe its still good.

Yep I LOVE that trail!! Are you talking about the overlook after the big hill? (after the big hill from the the Hawthorne side). Or the small over look that is just past the spot where people fish? I used to ride the whole trail just about every weekend a few years ago. But could not do it right now. But i'll get there again soon I hope. Would help if the weather would finally cool down some.

They opened up a few side trails that are kind of fun on the MTB. Sometimes I'll take both bikes with me the MTB and the road bike and ride a bit of both. Something different to do once in awhile by riding both bikes in the same day.

The Sweetwater Overlook is also very picturesque. Makes for some nice rest stops especially after some of those hills! I haven't done the whole trail yet myself but have made it to the Alachua Overlook from Hawthorne which is only about 1.5 miles from Bowlware park.

Hubby and I are planning on going tomorrow. I just hope we can get started early enough. The heat this afternoon just about did me in.

LindaN

The BBQ place in Hawthorne used to be a Sonny's but now it's Diane's. No salad bar but great ribs!

The Sweetwater Overlook is also very picturesque. Makes for some nice rest stops especially after some of those hills! I haven't done the whole trail yet myself but have made it to the Alachua Overlook from Hawthorne which is only about 1.5 miles from Bowlware park.

Hubby and I are planning on going tomorrow. I just hope we can get started early enough. The heat this afternoon just about did me in.

LindaN

The BBQ place in Hawthorne used to be a Sonny's but now it's Diane's. No salad bar but great ribs!

Doh!!! Your right... it was Sonny's .. Dunno how I forgo that... Yep that overlook is very picturesque. I have ridden some of the mountain bike trails waaaay over on the other side of it. Cant remember the name of the state park that I rode in but its south of Gainesville.

Yes, We rode the Gainesville/Hawthorne trail today and I managed to ride all 30.3 miles! That's a first for me. No record time but I was just happy to have done the whole thing AND not be completely wiped out. They say it's 16 miles one way but according to my computer it was just over 15. We got started a little after 9 AM and it really didn't start getting hot until our last few miles. Actually it was overcast and there were some rain clouds hovering but we managed to stay dry.

Yes, We rode the Gainesville/Hawthorne trail today and I managed to ride all 30.3 miles! That's a first for me. No record time but I was just happy to have done the whole thing AND not be completely wiped out. They say it's 16 miles one way but according to my computer it was just over 15. We got started a little after 9 AM and it really didn't start getting hot until our last few miles. Actually it was overcast and there were some rain clouds hovering but we managed to stay dry.

Monday 28th.. Yep got another short ride in today 12.5 miles i think. But it felt longer with about 5 miles of that into a pretty strong headwind. I keep telling myself "I have to get the short rides under my belt again so that I can do the longer ones later. If I don't do the shorter ones now there will be NO longer ones later.." .. LOL

Didn't ride Sunday as the weather was pretty threatening here until mid-morning, when it made good on its threats! Monday dawned beautiful, sunny and cool, absolutely perfect for riding. I dawned sick to my stomach and didn't feel well until the afternoon.

Today I finally got out for a ride, nice and cool first thing this morning. On my way home I rode under some dark clouds, it didn't rain on me, but the wind picked up from nothing to what seemed like 15mph instantly. Of course it wasn't a tail wind, but a straight on head wind. So I put my head down and pedaled into it the last 7 miles home. I still made my usual 22.3 miles, so I shouldn't complain. I'll try it again tomorrow.

I did get a ride in tuesday, started out as the "ride to the post office" on the mountain bike. It was cooler so I decided to ride more than just to the post office. I would guess around 15 miles (forgot to reset the bike pc). Was the same ride as monday only this time I rode the MTB on the sandy road to & from the pavement (that added about a mile round trip). Also added a bit more to the ride from where I turned around monday. Again with the headwind for about 4 miles on the way back home... ugggg Of course on the mountain bike it felt like a longer slower ride (which i'm sure it was lol) .... Gotta love the HUM of the MTB tires on the pavement... hahah